Vending-machine.



G. H. SCOFIELD.

VENDING MACHINE.

APPLICATION rmm mm: as, 1000.

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VENDING MACHINE.

APPLICATION FILED JUNE as, 1909.

3 Patented Sept. 19,1911. 0 4 SHEETS BHEET 2 i y WITNESSES fim lmlldwjl'eld BY ATTORNEYS G. H. SGOPIELD.

VENDING MACHINE.

APPLICATION FILED JUNE 23. most 1,003,814. Patented Sept. 19,1911.

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@ 55 (718431 16911 dcofikld A TTOR/VE VS G. H. SGOFIELD.

VENDING MACHINE.

APPLICATION rum) JUNE 23. 1909.

1,003,8 1 4-. Patented Sept. 19, 1911.

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INVE/VTUR 67152 20611 aw 2km WITNESSES ATTORNEYS UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

CHARLES H. SCOFIELD, OF CHERRY VALLEY, NEW YORK, ASSIGNOR TO THE SCOFIELD UNIVERSAL VENDING MACHINE COMPANY, OF CHERRY VALLEY, NEW YORK, A

CORPORATION OF NEW YORK.

VENDING-MACHINE.

Specification of Letters Patent.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, Crmnnns H. SoormLn,

of Cherry Valley, in the county of Otscgo and State of New York, have invented a new and Improved Vending-Machine, of which the following is a full, clear, and exact description.

This invention relates to anew and improved coincontrolled device for vending peanuts or the like, and at the same time supplying a bag to the purchaser.

The object of the invention is to provide a device which will be simple in construction, easily operated, which may be cheaply manufactured, and which at the same time will be strong and durable.

A further object of the invention is to provide coin-controlled means for automatically delivering an aliquot quantity of peanuts.

A further object is to provide coin-controlled means for automatically supplying a bag or other receptacle to the purchaser.

A still further object is to provide means for keeping the peanuts or other articles stored in the machine, at a suitable warm temperature.

These and further objects, together with the construction and combination of parts, will be more fully described hereinafter and particularly set forth in the claims.

Reference is to be had to the accompanying drawings forming a part of this specification, in which similar characters of reference indicate corresponding parts in all the views, and in which Figure 1 is a perspective View of my device; Fig. 2 is a rear view in elevation, parts being broken away to show the underlying structure; Fig. 3 is a side view, in elevation, partly in section, to show the underlying structure; Fig. 1 is a bottom plan view of the bag-delivering apparatus; Fig. 5 is a small fragmentary perspective view of the boot of the machine; Fig. 6 is a small perspective view of the scoop; Fig. 7 is an enlarged fragmentary perspective view of the coin-chute and locking-lever; and Fig. 8 is a perspective view of one of the bags, showing the reinforced bottom.

Referring more particularly to the separate parts of the device, 1 indicates a suitable casing or frame, which may be of any suitable form and material, and preferably consists of a lower compartment 2, an intermediate compartment 3, and a top compartment 1. This casing may be closed at the top and back by suitable covers or doors, which may be locked in position by any suitable mechanism.' The lowest compartment 2 is adapted to contain a heating device 5, which may be of any suitable form, such as a kerosene lamp, a gas burner or the like, and is for the purpose of heating the contents of the machine.

In order to carry the hot vapors of combustion up around the contents of the machine, there are provided a plurality of openings 6 in a partition 7 which extends between the compartments 2 and 3. These openings 6 communicate with a channel or duct, which is formed at the side of the compartment 3 and extends up along the side of the compartment to a vent 8, through which the gases are adapted to escape into the outer air.

The compartment 3 contains the operating and delivering mechanism of the machine.

This compartment contains a suitable sup-- porting frame 9, which is adapted to be slid in and out of the compartment 3 through the back opening therein, and may also be locked in its normal posit-ion by means of suitable locks 10 and 11, which engage suitable latches 13 and 14, secured in any wellknown manner to the sides of the compartment 3. The support 9 has a front face 15, which extends through a circular opening in the front of the casing 01' frame 1.

Secured to the rear of the face 15, there is provided a spiral flange 16, which extends upwardly to the side of the support 9, and forms a chute, down which the peanuts are adapted to slide from the compartment 4 above. Also secured to the front face 15,

there is provided a cone 17, which has a sector opening at 18, and forms at its bottom edge a continuation of an opening 19 in the face 15. This opening 19 has a suittatably support an operating shaft 22. The

Patented Sept. 19, 1911.

shaft 22 has secured on its front end, outside of the machine, a suitable hand crank 23, by which it is adapted to be rotated and which has an indicating point 24 thereon, for the purpose of indicating the proper starting position of the crank, and which is aided by means of an arrow 25, formed or engraved on the front of the machine. The opposite end of the shaft 22 extends through and is secured to a rotary scoop 26. The shaft 22 extends through a suitable cross beam 27, which is secured to the supporting frame 9 in any well-known manner, and thereby rotatably supports the scoop 26 on the frame 9.

The scoop 26 consists preferably of a circular flanged back plate 28, which extends through a circular opening in the supporting frame 9, and a front ring plate 29,which abuts against the back of the facing plate 15, and encircles the base of the cone l7. Joining the front plate 28 with the back plate 29, there is provided a cone 30, which is similar in shape to the cone 17 and of slightly larger size, and which also has a sector, cut out to form an opening, as at 31, to correspond with the opening 18 in the cone 17. In order to vary the size of the opening 31, so as to permit different quantities or different sizes of commodities to fall through, there is provided a curved plate 80, which has a flange 81 thereon, through which extends a bolt 82, which is adjustably secured in a slot 83 in the back plate 28. Extending outwardly from one of the side edges of the opening 31 in the cone 30, there is provided a plate 32, which forms, with a plate 33, secured thereto at an angle in any well-known manner, a pocket, which is adapted to scrape up and hold an aliquot portion of peanuts or the like.

The shaft 22 projects beyond the supporting cross bar 27, and has secured thereto in any well-known manner, a double bellcrank lever 34. The bell-crank lever 34 has a latch-arm 35, which is adapted to engage at its lower end a notch 36 in a locking lever 37, which is pivotally secure-d in any wellknown manner to the cross bar 27. The locking lever 37 has an angular member 38 formed thereon, which is adapted to prevent the latch-arm 35, and thus the shaft 22, from being rotated in the wrong direction. This lever 37 is adapted to be operated by a coin, and is counterweighted by a weight 39, whereby the lever will be operated only when a coin of the proper weight has been inserted in the machine. The opposite end of the lever 37 from which the counterweight 39 is attached is inserted through a slot 40 in the lower end of a coin-chute 41, which extends up and over the support 9 to the front of the machine, where it terminates in alinement with an opening in the face of the machine. There is provided a suitable magnet 42, which is juxtaposed to the chute 41, and is adapted to draw out iron washers or the like and prevent them from operating the lever 37.

It is to be noted that the lower end of the chute 41 is open at one side. This permits a coin to drop from out of the chute after it has operated the lever in a manner to be described hereinafter.

The end of the lever 37 which extends through the slot 40 is formed with a plurality of steps 43 and 44. When the coin which is inserted in the chute 41 falls down, it strikes the larger step 43, which permits the coin to lower the lever 37, and yet does not permit the coin to drop entirely out of the chute 41. In order that the coin may drop entirely out of the chute 41, it is nec essary that the chute be shifted over into the dotted-line position indicated in Fig. 2, where the increased distance between the bottom of the chute 41 and the smaller step 44 permits the coin to drop entirely out of the chute into a suitable coin receptacle below, which is not shown.

In order to permit the shifting of the chute 41 back and forth, it is preferably made flexible, and is normally held in the position indicated in full lines in Fig. 2, by means of a spring 45, which is secured in any well-known manner to the cross bar 27 In order to prevent the chute 41 from being pressed too far by the spring 45, there is provided a suitable stop 46, extending from the lever 37. The chute 41 is operated against the tension of the spring 45 by means of one of the arms 47 on the bellcrank lever 34, which engages the chute 41 after a short rotation of the shaft 22. There is provided one other arm on the bell crank lever 34, and this is the bag-delivering operating arm 47, which is preferably offset slightly to avoid colliding with the chute 41 during the rotation of the shaft 22.

The bag-delivering mechanism has a frame 48, which isadapted to be supported on the top of the supporting frame 9 and is removably secured thereto by means of suitable flanges 49 and 50, secured to the bottom of the frame 48. The bottom of the frame 48 has preferably a pair of longitudinal slots 51 and 52, which form between them a support for a bracket 53, which has an opening therein whereby it guides a rod 54, which has secured thereto at one end a feeder 55, said feeder having upwardlyextending flanges 56, which pass through the slots 51 and 52, and are adapted to engage a reinforced bottom 59 on the lowermost of a plurality of bags 60.. The feeder is adapted to be advanced from the full-line position to the dotted-line position shown in Fig. 4, by means of a lever 61, which is pivotally secured at one end in any wellknown manner to the frame 48, and is connected at its other end to a cross bar 62, secured on the rod 54 by means of a connectinglink 63. The feeder 55 is drawn back from the dotted-line position to the full-line position indicated in Fig. 4, by means of a bell-crank lever 64, which is pivotally secured intermediate its ends in any well-known manner to the frame 48, and is pivotally connected at one of its ends to the cross bar 62 by means of a connecting link 65. The other arm of the bell-crank lever 64 is preferably curved in the form of a cam, and extends downwardly, so to be more readily engaged by the arm 47 of the double bell-crank lever 34. The frame 48 has suitable side members 65, 66, 67 and 68, which are adapted to hold the pile of bags 60 on the frame 48, and one of these side members 67 also forms a guide for a weighted frame 69, which is adapted to force the bags 60 down onto the feeder 55. There is provided an opening in the front 65, which coincides with an opening 71 in the face of the frame 1, through which the bag is adapted to be projected by the feeder 55.

There is provided a suitable signal or bell 70, which is adapted to be operated by the bell-crank lever 34 during its rotation. There is also provided a suitable opening 72 in the front of the casing 1, which may be protected by wire gauze, glass or the like, and is adapted to permit the salable contents of the device to be seen.

The upper compartment 4 forms a storing chamber for the supply of the commodity (such as peanuts) to be vended, and is connected to the chute formed by the flange 16 by means of a suitable hopper formed by the sides of the casing 1, and by partitions 73 and 74.

The operation of the device will be readily understood by the above description. A coin is inserted through the opening in the front of the casing 1, and slides down the chute 41, where it passes by a magnet 42 which is adapted to draw out iron washers or the like, and falls onto the step 43 on the lever 37. The weight of the coin is just sufficient to overbalance the counterweight 39 and draw the locking notch 36 away from the latch-arm 35. The arm 35 thereby permits the shaft 22 to be rotated by means of the handle 23. The rotation of the shaft 22 carries the scoop 26 with it, which scrapes the plate 33 along the bottom of the chute formed by the flange 16, gathering a quantity of peanuts into the pocket formed by the plates 32 and 33. The further rotation of the shaft 22 carries the scoop 26 around until the opening 31 in the cone 30 comes into alinement with the opening 18 inthe stationary cone 17, when the peanuts or other article, drop into the interior of the cone 17, and thus through the opening 19 in the pivoted scoop 21. The scoop 21 may be tilted, and the peanuts removed there from.

During the rotation of the shaft 22, the arm 46 on the bell-crank lever 34 comes in contact with the side of the chute 41, forcing it into the dotted-line position shown in Fig. 2, where the coin is permitted to drop out by reason of the increased distance between the lever 37 and the closed end of the chute 46. The lever 37 then is brought back by the counterweight 39 into such a position that it will normally engage the latch-arm 35 when it comes around opposite the notch 36. Before this has occurred, however, the bell will have been struck by the bellcrank lever 34, and also the arm 47 will have come in contact with the lever 61, and thereby will have forced, by means of the feeder 55, one of the bags through the opening 71. The lever 47 will also have come in contact with the cam-arm of the bell-crank lever 64, drawing the feeder 55 back into its original position. The bag supplied by the machine may be opened over the end of the scoop 21, and the contents dumped therein.

There is thus provided a simple and easily-operated device, which will supply hot peanuts or like commodity and a bag to carry the articles in.

Having thus described my invention, I claim as new and desire to secure by Letters Patent 1. In a vending machine, the combination with a casing, of a rotatable scoop rotatably mounted in said casing and adapted to scoop up material from the bottom of said casing, a latch arm connected to said scoop, a lock-' ing lever adapted to co-act with said latch arm to prevent said scoop from rotating, means for releasing said locking lever, and means for rotating said scoop, said means for rotating said scoop being also adapted to rotate said latch arm.

2. In a vending machine, the combination with a scoop, of means for rotating said scoop, mechanism for locking said scoop against rotation, a member adapted to release said mechanism, means for holding said member in engagement with said looking means during a portion of the revolution of said scoop, and means connected to said scoop for releasing said member.

3. In avending machine, the combination with a frame, of a scoop rotatably supported in said frame, said scoop comprising a back plate, a front ring plate, a cone having a sector opening therein connecting said plates, and a pocket connected to said cone and juxtaposed to said opening in said cone.

4. In a vending machine, the combination with a frame, of a stationary cone having an opening therein connected to said frame, a flange forming a chute connected to said frame, and a rotatable scoop juxtaposed to said cone, said scoop comprising front and back plates, a cone having an opening therein connecting said plates and juxtaposed to said stationary cone, and a pocket connected to said plates and juxtaposed to said opening in said cone on said scoop.

5. In a vending machine, the combination with a frame, of a front plate having an opening therein, a stationary cone having an opening therein adapted to fit said opening in said front plate, a flange, forming a chute, connected to said front plate, and a scoop adapted to deliver material from said chute into said cone.

6. In a vending machine, the combination with a frame, of a commodityfeeding mechanism connected to said frame, and a bagfeeding mechanism connected to said frame, said bag-feeding mechanism comprising a support, a feeder slidingly secured on said support, a lever for advancing said feeder, a lever for withdrawing said feeder, and means connected to said commodity-feeding mechanism adapted to operate said levers.

7. In a vending machine, the combination with a frame, of a commodity-feeding mechanism connected. to said frame, and a bagfeeding mechanism connected to said frame, said bag-feeding mechanism comprising a feeder, a lever for advancing said feeder, connecting means between said lever and said feeder, a lever adapted to draw back said feeder, connecting means between said feeder and said last-mentioned lever, and means operated by said commodity-feeding mechanism adapted to successively operate 7 said levers.

with a frame, of a front plate for said frame having an opening therein, a stationary cone having an opening therein juxtaposed to said opening in said front plate, a flange forming a chute, connected to said front plate, a shaft rotatably secured in said front plate and said frame, a scoop connected to said shaft, said scoop comprising front and back plates, a cone having an opening therein interposed between said front and back plates and juxtaposed to said stationary cone, a pocket interposed between said front and back plates, a latch-arm secured to said shaft, a locking lever adapted to engage said latch-arm to prevent said shaft from rotating, a member operatively connected to said locking lever, means connected tosaid shaft adapted to manipulate said member, a bagfeeding mechanism connected to said frame, and an arm connected to said shaft, adapted to operate said bag-feeding mechanism.

10. In a vending machine, the combina tion with a frame, of means for storing a commodity in said frame, a scoop rotatably supported in said frame and adapted to remove an aliquot portion of the commodity from said frame, said scoop comprising front and back plates, a member interposed between said plates having an opening therein, a pocket juxtaposed to said opening and connected to said plates, means for operating said scoop, a latch-arm connected to said means, a locking lever co-acting with said latch-arm to prevent the operation of said scoop, operating means for said locking lever, a bag-feeding mechanism connected to said frame, said bag feeding mechanism comprising a support, a feeder on said support, levers for operating said feeder, and an arm connected to said scoop adapted to operate said levers.

In testimony whereof I have signed my name to this specification in the presence of two subscribing witnesses.

CHARLES H. SCOFIELD.

WVitnesses ALMOND CRAMER, ALVA S. PEARSON.

Copies of this patent may be obtained for five cents each, by addressing the Commissioner of Patents, Washington, D. C. 

